Dr. Liz Ackley
Dr. Liz Ackley, the Brian H. Thornhill Associate Professor of Health & Human Performance at Roanoke College, has been recognized as one of 12 recipients of the 2022 Outstanding Faculty Awards by The State Council of Higher Education (SCHEV) and Dominion Energy. The award will be presented at an in-person ceremony on March 1, 2022. Ackley is one of only two professors at private Virginia colleges honored with the 2022 award.
“If we were to mint a professor who was designed to engage students in community-altering research, to inspire students through her instructional talent, to provide leadership to college and community in ample doses, the professor would be Dr. Ackley,” Michael C. Maxey, president of Roanoke College, said in the nomination of Ackley for the award.
Ackley, who joined the Roanoke College faculty in 2010, holds a B.S. in exercise science from the State University of New York at Cortland College, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in health and human performance from Middle Tennessee State University.
“This honor is such a recognition of the teams who have supported my work over my career,” Ackley said. “I am celebrating with everyone who has provided support and collaboration. That includes students, faculty colleagues, the administration and community partners.”
“It’s also made me reflect on how lucky am I to be at Roanoke College and our mission of Freedom with Purpose,” Ackley said. “I am fortunate to work at a place that really believes in giving faculty and students the freedom to explore the world in a lot of different ways.”
The award recognizes outstanding faculty for their work in four areas: teaching, discovery, knowledge integration and service. The following are excerpts from Ackley’s nomination:
Teaching
“Students and colleagues describe Ackley’s approach to teaching as engagingly dynamic and alive. She facilitates learning using unique materials, technology, and industry leaders as mediums for immersing students in critical inquiry and engaging students in learning with purpose.”
Discovery
“Ackley developed a novel health surveillance methodology to identify geographic inequities in the social, environmental, and economic factors contributing to health disparities in children. Her surveillance system, the Roanoke Valley Community Healthy Living Index, has since grown to become one of the largest, most successful translational research models of its kind.”
Knowledge Integration
“Dr. Ackley has spearheaded a number of efforts to bring together traditionally disparate academic disciplines, institutions of higher education, and community partners to develop experiential learning opportunities for students which emulate the real world. She does this by convening partners around a shared equity agenda informed by her primary line of discovery.”
Service
“In addition to bolstering her professional reputation through service to her academic community, Dr. Ackley has advanced Roanoke College’s institutional goals, position within the community, and pursuit of becoming a top-100 liberal arts college…Her most visual service contribution came to fruition in 2018 when she single-handedly founded, funded, and institutionalized the Center for Community Health Innovation at Roanoke College, developing new pathways to student experiential learning opportunities through internships, service-driven research opportunities, and special projects with community partners.”
Dr. Matthew Rearick, Health and Human Performance department chair, said what separates Ackley’s “work from others across the state is how she manages to merge everything she does into a seamless pursuit. It is virtually impossible to see where one of her academic areas ends and another begins. This is her gift to her students, colleagues, and community.”
Student Kavya Iyer ’22, described Ackley as “an amazing mentor.”
“Dr. Ackley fosters a collaborative and interdisciplinary team of students from different majors, with various points of view, to tackle problems that everyone is proud to be a part of,” Iver said. “She takes time to know what our future career plans and goals are and helps us target weaknesses to make ourselves more competitive applicants for future endeavors. “
- Roanoke College’s Public Relations Department
